FIFA World Cup 2022: Spain 7-0 Costa Rica, Highlights; Sizzling La Roja crush Costa Rica in Group E fixture

Doha, Nov. 23: It was vintage Spain who were in action at the Al Thumama Stadium in Doha on Wednesday, as they handed Costa Rica a 7-0 thrashing loss in the FIFA World Cup 2022 opener.

Spain dominated the proceedings as they raced to a 3-0 lead within the first half-an-hour. This was the first time since 1934, that Spain had scored three goals in the first half in the World Cup. In the second half, Spain were relentless as they pumped in four more to hand Costa Rice a crushing defeat. As many as six players got their names on the scoresheet as Spain registered their biggest FIFA World Cup win on a record-breaking night.

Playing in the typical Spanish manner of pass, pass, move, Spain held 85% possession in the first half to take the game away. In the opening half, Spain had seven shots with three on target. Goals from Dani Olmo, Marco Asensio and Ferran Torres saw Spain head into half time on the back of a comfortable 3-0 lead.

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After sending an early attempt wide, Olmo scored the opener on the 11th minute. A clean pass from Gavi and the Spanish forward sent it flying over Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas to score the first goal of the match. Their dominance continued as Asensio doubled the lead ten minutes later.

At the half-way mark, Torres scored from the penalty spot to make it 3-0. Nine minutes into the second half and Spain made it 4-0, with Torres scoring his second of the night. The Spanish dominance continued as they showed no signs of slowing down.

Gavi, the youngest-ever player for Spain in the World Cup, marked his special occasion as he scored a stellar goal to make it 5-0 against a hapless Costa Rica. It was a night of celebration for the youngster, as he became the youngest player to score for Spain at the World Cup.

But the barrage of goals were far from over. Substitute Carlos Soler got onto the scoresheet on the 90th minute as Alvaro Morata scored two minutes later as a frustrated Costa Rice were left looking clueless, as they failed to record even one-shot on target.